New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-09-25
OTHER-WORLD FICTION.
ROMANCE OF PURGATORY.

c.,.s povoud has led Miss Phelps to add to the
80. =, s,,r,sensual fiction a third volume, deal
ing with what may he called the probationary
stage of the after-life from the orthodox Christian
nont of view. The Gates Between IS certain
OF a popular welcome. 1t is tcnderly ana sympa-
tbetically conceived and written. 1t treats OF
ousstlons which have concerned or rerplexed
millions lt is abreast of that progressive ortho-
doxy which has taken so strong hold OF Iate
vears At the same time il avoids taking issue
with the oil school ly vanturing upon denial OF
steiner methods of punishment than it postulates'
The conception is. perhaps, less artistic than was
10 have been ex oected, the reader being LETT 10
imagine. If lie can. how il was possible for snch u
narrative. avoweliy proceeding from diseH-
Bodied spirit to nave found its way INTO the
material SIN Of manuscript and to the press.
The authors refusal to facilitate the acceptahce Oh
her story throws rather 700 heavy burden upon
the imauua,ion of the public. and tbdS the gem
eral effect is liable to lie impaired. This does not
srem 10 have been unavoidable, and therefore III Is
the less jnstfable.
The story however is remarkable. Tic who is
supposed to tell II is Il physician whose lractce
was extensive anu whose reputation was hlgh'
Fducated in the material philosophy and science
of tho day he had taken that side OF his profession
which conirUcd in him all the op7queness OF DIS
education Physical life he had come to regard as
the be-al and the en-all, and he did not even take
the tropblo n reflect at all upon the possibility OF
another state of existence He never loved
woman until Ee was forty-fise. Then he met the
one woman irr,he world for him, and after years
cnnrtship ,narred Ler Sho healthy in body
and soul ,Ilke not young being thirty-fOur when
she married. but full of vigor and sweetness
dignity aud intellect. He loved her deeply ana
passionatey. But after their first child was porn
his naturally irritable temper began TO reassers
itself wher. - often, he was overworKeu ana "or-
red by multiplicity If business 20 IL happehed
that one evening he returned home Tor a nasty
dinner after an exhausfing day. VITA an exciting
eyening in pros pect. almost b oxen down a." IN Il
highly nervous condition. His wife was as tender
and afIectionate rs ever but everything Jared
mon the wear!cd and Overwrought man. and afler
erumb,iuq at he dinner he flung out of the house
with some thoughtess, but cruel, even brutal
words
His horse was impatient. In his own excitement
he irritated the animal still more and it ran away
with him After a coils on with a carriage con-
filming a lady who had been his patient and her
child, the doctors buggy was dashed against Il
lamppost. and he was flung out Presently lie rose
to his feet dazed The horse had disappeared
Only the wreck of the buggy remained and the
street was empty of people His head felt highty'
and lie attributed this to the shocF. Evidently be
Remembering an important business to be trans
acted with bis broker he then walked to the house
of the latter As lie reached the door he heard the
servant teups some one that the broker was out.
Tie doctor then went to attend meeting a. the
hospital with which he was connected. There was
an excited debate and TO his Indignation ana per
plexty lie cOGd not get any of the speakers to pay
the least attention to his representations. Leaving
the meeting in disgust he thought he woul 90 to
his brokers' Wall Street office in the chance OF
finding him. he arrived there, but the place was
locked up. He appealed to passing pJ! &c officer
to admit him after ringing in vain. The officer
paid no attention to him. but summoned the
iauitor, said he had heard noise. aud together
tIey inspected the building. The doctor entered
with tHfm AMI passed INTO the brokers' Office. lie
sank on a lounge and fell asleeD. Awaking he
found the policeman and janitor gone. and himself
locked in He concluded that the police inspector,
who knew him, had believed him to be intoxicated.
and so had left him TO q SOLDERING sleep He passed
a ~retcbed night In the morning the clerk cane
TO open the Office but took notice of him, nor
did the janitor. the broker himself, when be
arrived. The doctor could not understand this APP
parent general conspiracy 10 ignore bin, and
vainly app ,aed first to one and then to the other
They we're discussing recent fatal accident the
account of which appeared in the morning pers.
lie looked over tie shoder OF the one who mad the
iournaI and saw the announcement in largo head
lines that he himself had been killed instantly
the night before, in runaway accident AT once
he was filed with horror and indignation. What
would his wife suffer from this dreadful b!under!
He once more tried to force himself upon the at
tention of those who present. They paid
no attention to his renzied appeals. He seized the
brokers' arm and pressed 1t. The broker paid no
heed whatever to his action. Then n new and
dreadful idea dawned upon him. Why was 1t That
these living men did not see or hear himf 1t was
tecause the paper told the truth because he really
had been kill ed last night; because lie at that
moment q disembodied spirit.
Slowly this explanation made its way into his
mind and when at last he could dOutt it no longer
the awful situation CT his wife occurred 10 hls
thoughts and lie broke away from the place and
made for bis home But he could not go there.
Hitherto his movements had been apparently free.
Now he fel5 himself suddenly arrested COB
struction there was, but of what nature could not
md cannot testify >. There on the corner of
the thorou ghfare the heart of the town, by an in
visible force. by an nexpcable barrier. l. the
dead man fleeing to my living WIFE was beaten
hack Whence cane that awful order 7 How
came it And whereforoi | was thrust back by
blast of Power IncaiculaDle; it WAS like the cur
rent of an unknown force OF infinite capability.
Set tho will OF soul and body as would, could
not pass the head of che street. lie discovers that
he is virtually imprisoned. For a long time he
seems doomed to wander rostiessy through the busy
streets of the city; to hover about the exchanges
to listen TO the talk Of the great crowd of money
hunters He had cared much for money in life,
and this he thinks is his punishment. Still be is
more believer than when he was in the body.
Death has not changed him. His philosophy, his
science, are precisely the same. Only be has
learned that in one point his scept.csm was i'll
founded. There certainly is another life, or rather
life is continuous and death is mere change of
ditions For long time he iIets among the BUSH
ness scenes, always struggling to get to his wife
ana never able to succeed He presently meets the
spirit of that lady patIent whose carriage he had
run into on the ght of his death. She too had
IL. LIZ hn coll aiat Int fn,y